Denver -- Nuggets Mania is helping retailers ring it up in an otherwise dead time of year.

For the Sportsfan, a group of sports apparel stores in four western states, their Denver Nuggets gear sales are up an estimated 150 to 200 percent.

Mostly because the team just doesn't play this late in the season, and certainly doesn't look this good this late into May.

"The Nuggets definitely are a bright spot for us and they are helping to build excitement in the market. Things are gradually building, but the prospect of the Lakers and possibly Lebron James down the road has kept the lid on a genuine feeding frenzy. The Nuggets will never be the Broncos so it takes that much more to ramp up the excitement. Not that I’m complaining", said John Brennan, President of Sportsfan in Colorado, Kansas, Wyoming, and Arizona. "That being said, the Nuggets have the potential to go through the roof. Chauncey is the solid citizen (and local), Carmelo is the box office, and Birdman and J R Smith are the alternative rock stars. It’s a great marketing combination both on and off the court."

Brennan says he is preparing to order hundreds if not thousands of Nuggets t-shirts for their anticipated Western Conference Finals match-up with the marquee Los Angeles Lakers.

Right not, Chauncey Billups can claim the team's top selling jersey, followed by Carmelo Anthony.

Jerseys sell for $50 to $80 a piece, said Brennan.

At Sports Authority ,it's much the same with re-ordering underway now.

"Anything and everything Chris Andersen, there's a lot of excitement around anything he's doing," said Brian Stein, Senior Regional VP for Sports Authority. "And certainly if they get into the NBA Finals, it's just going to be pretty crazy!"

Stein wouldn't offer figures on increased sales but did say the Nuggets are the only merchandise game in town right now, as the country struggles with a recession.

"I wouldn't say the Nuggets have a national following. But I think it kind of diverts attention away from things they may be facing in their daily lives. I think it's nice to be part of something that's winning," Stein said.

In some ways, this spring run is unprecedented for retailers who don't see the basketball team grab headlines like this.

Stein says Rocktober 2007 was the last time a local team surprised everyone the same way, as the Colorado Rockies made it to the World Series.

"Rockies sales were unbelievable that year. We repositioned product. It's exponential People love to wear a part of history," Stein said.

NBA merchandising spokeswoman Kristin Conte said Chris Andersen had the top selling custom jersey in the entire league for the month of April.

The league expects to unveil some sort of "Birdman" t-shirt later in the week, to compete with several others already on store racks.

Carmelo's authentic #15 jersey is also selling well, Conte said and will likely climb a few spots from it's most recent chart position of #15 after his game winner Saturday.